Council approves agreement to develop Memorial Drive in south Abilene

Abilene City Council voted this morning to aid possible business development in south Abilene.

The council approved an agreement with Village Investment Partners, which owns undeveloped land north of Abilene Regional Medical Center. The developer plans to build a Sam's Club in the area.

The agreement allows the city and Village Investment Partners to cooperatively develop Memorial Drive, which runs roughly north-south but currently is not a through street. Developing the road will help alleviate residents' concerns about traffic flow related to the planned box store in the area.

Per the agreement, the city will be responsible for up to $200,000 of project costs, as well as engineering, bidding and construction oversight, and right-of-way acquisition, if necessary.

The council will vote on the agreement a second time in two weeks.

Last month, the council agreed to let the company build up to a 45-foot tall building on the property. The previous regulations limit buildings to 25 feet.

Construction on the property could begin between this fall and early 2013, and it should take about 10 months to complete, a representative of Sam's Club said at a city meeting last month.

The council also approved the revised budget for this year. The revised budget total for the general fund is $79,971,600.

Each year, the council approves a revised budget to ensure budget columns match after any changes from when the budget was approved in September.

Purchases

The council approved the following bid awards:

$207,439 for electrical improvements for the Northeast Water Treatment Plant. The project includes replacing capacitors and installing new surge protection equipment. The recommended low-bidder is Abilene Electrical Contractors.

$73,054 for a crane truck for the city's wastewater division. The crane truck — a large pickup with a mounted lift — is used to lift manhole covers, meters and other equipment. The recommended low-bidder was Arrow Ford in Abilene.

Zoning cases

Council approved the following zoning requests from:

Shirley Kay Yates to apply historic overlay zoning to her home at 1826 Belmont Blvd. The property was annexed in 1927 and the ranch bungalow home was built in 1948, according to city documents.

Betty and Jerry Gayden, to apply historic overlay zoning to their home at 1102 Sayles Blvd. The property was annexed in 1895, and the brick home built in 1926.

Southern Storage & Warehousing, represented by Pete Peterson, to rezone property at 1910 Industrial Blvd. from light industrial to general commercial. The rezoning allows a beauty salon to open on the property.

PAK Harris, to rezone property at 1813 Industrial Blvd. from heavy commercial to general commercial. Rezoning the property would allow a "personal services" business — such as a hair salon or nail shop — to open on the property.